Crimson road
by Mythfox
Summary: This story is a little tragic. It's about how Chiaki's destiny changes as one night she decides to explore an unknown road. Check it out if you're Kuronue's fan
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own YuuYuu Hakusho or any of the characters mentioned, however, I DO own the story and the following characters: Chiaki, Touma, Tsubaki, Shion, Hideaki, Misuru and others OC to come.

Author's note: it's been quite some time since last time I wrote something other than papers XD!!! Soooooo... I hope you enjoy this fic.

//*

It was a rainy and cold day. Chiaki was taking a bath, thinking about the past few months. Rain inspired on her such melancholy; it was almost depressing for her.

_FLASHBACK_

"Chi-chan, hurry up, we're already late for the party!" her mother said out loud.

_~Jeez… why do I have to go? This is just another family reunion. This is so annoying. _Chiaki thought to herself while brushing up her teeth.

"Hurry up honey, we'll be at the car" called her father.

_END OF FLASHBACK_

~_Had I known it was gonna be the last family reunion we were attending together, I would have enjoyed with them more._

It happened about 8 months before. After the family reunion, Chiaki, her parents, and her older brother took a different road home than usual. It was past 4am when they left aunt Tsubaki's place. A couple of streets before arriving their home, a drunkard driving a large van, crashed into them full speed. Chiaki's dad and brother died instantly, her mother died that night on the hospital. She was unconscious about a week with some serious wounds.

_FLASHBACK_

"My, my. Chia-chan and Touma-kun sure have grown into such wonderful teens" said Tsubaki while pinching their cheeks.

"He he. Thash noff it auntfy" said Touma while being _tortured_ by their aunt.

"He he he. My dear nephew, you've become quite handsome. So, how's university?" replied aunt Tsubaki while smirking at them.

"Well, this is my third year, so I'm starting to plan on my thesis" said reluctantly Touma.

"How 'bout you honey? How were your entry tests?" Tsubaki asked happily to Chiaki.

"I got into Keio" said Chiaki "I guess it'll be so much fun there" she smiled contently.

_END OF FLASHBACK_

Chiaki ended up crying in the bath. Rain can always make her remember, that's why she didn't like it.

She was left alone on a cold night such as this. She was almost a workaholic, but that was the only way she could move on with her life without her beloved family. University was tough, but she worked really hard and became a top student.

~_I really miss you all. But I know I can't just let go of this dream since is the last thing I have left to live for. _She repeated to herself every time she felt lonely.

Since that fateful day, Chiaki decided not to wander around people or get close to anyone. She always felt somewhat responsible for the accident and thought people could get hurt around her.

Every day, she would work to exhaustion, and eat little. She had dropped a lot weight in the whole time, but somehow she was still healthy.

Life at Keio University was very appealing. Lots of people, clubs and activities. A very lively place indeed. Chiaki would attend morning classes and work as part-timer on a cloths store. After work she would go straight home. Living by herself on a small apartment wasn't so bad at all. It had a small kitchen and a bathroom, her room wasn't too big, but spacious enough to have a desk besides the bed. Even on winter, it was cozy.

Chiaki was just a normal girl. Well… as normal as she could be having lost her family on such a horrible accident. Aunt Tsubaki would call her every now and then, and visit her to check up on her. Although the rest of her family was always watching her over, she didn't let anyone in her life. Closing in her own mind wasn't exactly healthy, but that's the only way she knew to overcome the pain.

~_Sha!!!! I have a paper due tomorrow, and some tests next week. Need to do the laundry and pay the rent… this cabbage is rotten too -___-! _She thought.

"Iee!!! I don't want to waste this food but it's already rotten… guess I'll feed it to the neighbor's cat" Chiaki said to herself while laughing.

After so much stress produced by partial exams and essays, Chiaki would usually go jogging for a while at night in a park nearby her place. A small but beautiful park but with lots of trees, it was on the base of a small mountain. Some wild animals would roam sometimes on the park, attracted by the smell of food that people would carry around on a picnic. Chiaki would always jog through the same path, and end up climbing the stairs to a shrine uphill and paying her respects to her deceased family.

This day wasn't particularly different from any other after tests week. It started as a cold November morning, with lots of traffics, classes would be very slow and work would be tough. She would go straight home from her workplace, get on some sweatpants and sweater, and go to the park to jog, though it was a little bit difficult on winter. Surprisingly, this night was rather peaceful, and while jogging near the shrine stairway, now she noticed something different.

_~I never noticed this small road. Wonder where it leads. _Chiaki inquired to herself.

What will she do? Where does this unseen road lead to? Hope you join us next time for more on this adventure!!!

//*


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter's intro: so, last time Chiaki was about to take a road she has never seen before. Will this road lead her to a new destiny? Will it change her life for better or worse? Let's see what happens.

//*

_~I never noticed this small road. Wonder where it leads. _Chiaki inquired to herself.

Curious as she was, she examined carefully the visible path. It was very rustic, seemed like it was made by hikers or bicycle riders. It seemed to darken as it went further inside the hill. She probably shouldn't go so late, not knowing what lies ahead. Chiaki took a moment to think carefully whether to go in or not, and then she noticed a gleam deeper inside the woods.

Now she was interested in finding out what was going on. So she started to walk slowly following the gleam. The surroundings became bleaker by the minute, but she wanted so bad to find out the source of that thin light, she didn't even noticed where she was heading. It got darker and darker, but she still saw it. Chiaki was a little cold, but it didn't matter for she was too busy trying to figure out what that gleam was.

_FLASHBACK_

"Chi-chan!!!! Chi-chan!!!! Ohayou!!!" said Shion, while running towards her.

"Hey there Shion-chan!" said Chiaki while waving.

"So are you? And Touma-kun?" Shion asked slightly blushing.

_~Eh? She still has a crush on Touma-nii?! _She thought to herself. "I'm fine, and Touma-nii… well, I'm not telling" Chaiki smirked.

"W-what?! Why aren't you telling?" asked Shion, blushing deeper.

"You still have a crush on Touma-nii?" Chiaki asked "you know, he's already in second year of university, and he's got tons of girls after him" she laughed.

"Eh?!" Shion's face was bit red "it's not that, I-I…" stuttered

"Y-you? Of course you like him… but instead of asking about him, we should study for our entry exams!" claimed Chiaki

_END OF FLASHBACK_

When did she stop talking to her friends? Ah… It must have been when she started her senior year of high school. She lost contact with some friends due to entry exams and courses she was taking to get enough credits for university. Shion has been her friend ever since fifth grade, when they moved to town. They were always together, and met more friends all along.

Chiaki arrived to a clearing. It was a small clearing lit by the moon's light. She looked up to the sky, remembering her family and friends. It was really hard for her to wake up and being told her whole family was dead. She then remembered why she took that weird path.

_~Ah, right… where did that gleam come from? _She thought while looking around.

While looking she noticed something was different about her surroundings. Not sure what it was, she kept on looking until something shiny caught her eye. She approached it and picked it up from the ground. It was a blood red pendant. It was a beautiful stone with exquisite details on its mounting and a silver chain.

_~Kirei! (gasp) I've never seen something this beautiful before. Wonder who lost it. _She thought _I'll take it with me and see if I can find the owner._

So, planning on going back to the main road, she pocketed the pendant and looked for the entrance she used to get there. Somehow it wasn't there. It was like she never used any road to get to that clearing. A little bit upset, Chiaki started looking around. Then she took her cell phone out of her pocket to use a GPS tracking system, but she didn't get any signal. Now she was alarmed.

_~What the hell is going on? How could I get lost? _She thought overwhelmed.

A rustle awakened her from her thoughts. Chiaki looked around carefully and made no sound. She decided that, if it was a wild animal, like a bear, she should remain silent as not to attract its attention. A few minutes later nothing had happened.

_~Wonder what that was… Maybe I should just try to find a way downhill to the main road. _She thought.

Finally she chose what seemed to be the most likely direction of the road and started walking. After 10 minutes walking, she noticed the ground wasn't downhill nor uphill, but plain. Her cell phone still couldn't pick any signals.

_FLASHBACK_

"Eh… Chiaki-san, can I talk to you after school?" said a young and handsome boy. His almond eyes and dark hair were just gorgeous, his long and blonde hair matching his attractive features.

"Eh?! Is there any problem Hideaki-san?" Chiaki asked.

"No, no. I just want to talk 'bout something with you, can you wait for me after class? I'll walk you home" Hideaki replied.

"Sure, I'll wait for you at the school gate after class" said Chiaki.

Being a high school freshman was an easy life. Shion and Chiaki were rather popular, and among boys they were considered the most beautiful freshmen. Hideaki, on the other hand was class-rep and a really popular second year boy.

"So…" said Shion with a mischievous grin, "Hideaki-sempai and you, congrats Chia-chan" she said while glomping Chiaki.

"What are you talking about? Hideaki-sempai and I are just friends" Chiaki replied slightly blushing.

_END OF FLASHBACK_

Chiaki sighed. The place was rather unfamiliar. The more she walked the least she knew where she was heading. Again, she tried on her cell phone without success. She kept on walking for a couple of hours. Completely tired, Chiaki decided to rest under a huge tree. Soon after she fell asleep, but was awakened by voices. She opened her eyes but it was dark and she was still trying to focus. The voices belonged to a bunch of demonic thugs that had happened to find her. Once she rubbed her eyes, she finally came up with the images that matched the voices.

It were some kind of creatures, ones she never heard of before. One of them had cat-like eyes and soft purple skin. Another one looked like a wolf standing on two feet. Other looked like reptiles. There were even some that looked like average people. These mysterious creatures were talking about her, but she couldn't quite understand nor figure out what were they doing around her.

One of them noticed when she opened her eyes. It warned the others and all of them turned to face her. The wolf-like creature took a torch and got it close to her to check her out.

"Ah, such a beauty, even thought is just a filthy human" he said.

At that, one of the human-like demons approached her with a knife and said "Shall we kill her or sell her? Actually I'd like to eat her" he smirked.

Now aware of the dangerous situation she was in, she decided to go for it and stood up and ran away as fast as she could. The demons chased after her, but unknown to all of them, someone or something was watching from above.

//*

Maya-chan: wiii!!! Another chapter done. Wonder what comes next. Anyway, I hope you people are enjoying this story, though I'm a little rusty on fanfics XD

Youko: hey! Why is HE the main character here? Am I at least gonna appear?

Maya-chan: hehehe, don't worry Youko-kun, you'll get your own story soon enough.

Youko: not fair… (sighs)


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter's intro: Chiaki was running away from demonic thugs, but someone or something is watching from above. What will happen? Who or what is watching? Will the thugs catch her? Now: chapter 3.

//*

Chiaki runs through branches and bushes as fast as she can, never looking behind. She hears _those creatures_ approaching her, but can't go any faster. She can only think of getting away safely. She will survive. She has to. That's what she promised to her family in their funeral, that she'd be strong and go on with her life.

Somehow, she tripped on a tree's root and the pendant flew out of her pocket as she fell to the floor. Its gleam catches the eyes of the observer. Then Chiaki notices that the pendant has fallen and reaches out for it as she tries to stand again. Luckily for her, she manages to grab it and run again, having the demon thugs right on her heels.

~_Good thing I'm wearing sneakers now._ She thought relieved.

Even though, she was worn out, but the thugs were still running after her. One of them threw something at her legs that made her fall down. Once in the ground, the demons caught up to her. Chiaki tried her best to stand up but her body was too strained to respond.

~_Damn it! Move it Chiaki! You have to stand up! You have to run away!_ She yelled at herself in her mind _I can't die in a place like this… not here, not now!!!!_

_FLASHBACK_

"Hide-kun and I are together" Chiaki said in a low voice and blushing madly.

"EH?! Seriously?" asked Shion completely shocked.

"Y-yeah. Is there something wrong about it?" Chiaki lowered her head embarrassed.

"Iee. Congrats Chia-chan!!! Hideaki-kun is a nice catch" said Shion beaming.

Hideaki and Chiaki were a couple for over a year. Unfortunately, Hideaki went to a different prefecture's university, so they couldn't stay together. After a month, or so that Hideaki left, Chiaki received words of his family. He was dead; a huge piece of concrete fell on him when he was trying to save a kid wandering on a demolition site. She was devastated.

~_Why? Why did you have to die Hide-kun? I miss you so much…_

_END OF FLASHBACK_

"Shit, let go!!!" Chiaki yelled at them while trying to escape from the thugs.

She was screaming and kicking them. One of them pulled her from her hair of the ground.

"Little missy, if you want to live for now, you should stop messing with us" he said and then pounded her to the ground.

Chiaki tried to stand again but the thugs started beating her, saying they'd kill her. The one observing saw how she was holding the pendant to her chest, the one pendant that belonged to him. Once beaten up, one of them turned her around and ripped off her sweatshirt. They were planning on rapping her and then selling her as a slave. Half conscious, Chiaki still tried to fight, but could barely move due to her injuries. Now the observer has had enough. He decided to get what was rightfully his, back on his hands.

"My, my. If it's none other than you shitty low-lives and… my, this is surprising, look what we have here, a human" a deep dark voice was heard.

"Low-lives? Bastard, show yourself to us" said one

"You wuss, come on out so we can beat the crap outta ya" another one howled.

"Yareyare, such a bravery display, if you do not wish to die, this is your chance to run away, I don't feel like killing shit as yourselves" the voice said.

"You!!! I'll beat the shit outta ya! I'll make you beg me to kill you" said wolf-like demon.

"Hahaha. You sure about that?" said the voice "if that is the case, then I might as well kill you all"

The thugs were rather confident of kicking this demons butt. He walked out from the shadows. Long black hair, black pants, pointy ears, bat-like wings, and… two scythes on his waist. The thugs trembled at the mere sight of this demon. A high class demon, known by many as one of the most skilled thieves in Makai. His eyes showed his killing intent. Chiaki saw him a little blurry, then she saw the blood spilling and the bodies falling lifeless down on the floor. She then fainted.

Next thing she knows, a dark male voice rang through her ears. She was still tired, so she could barely open her eyes. A shadow posed over her head and she felt someone's hand prying open hers. She'd never let go of the pendant, so he was forcefully taking it. Chiaki gathered all the strength she had left and held tightly onto it.

_~I'm not letting anyone take it. This belongs to me now._ She muttered in her head.

"Human, let go of my pendant." He said plainly

That voice felt so close, she ended up opening her eyes, and then fainted. The demon decided to take her with him, probably thinking she could be of any use. Besides, he was curious about how she found it and why wasn't she letting it go.

"What's this Kuronue-sama?" said a little neko boy.

"Oh, that… It's just a human, you probably shouldn't touch 'her'" replied the winged demon.

"Eeeeewwwww!!!! Why did you bring a filthy human here, master?" asked the neko boy.

"No reason in particular" he replied "now, shouldn't you be doing your chores?" he finished glaring at the kid.

"H-hai, Kuronue-sama" said the kid and dashed away.

_~Tch. Kids are too curious and annoying. Besides, is not like I had to tell him my reasons. _Thought Kuronue, while walking towards his room, with Chiaki hanging over his shoulder.

He opened the dark wooden door and walked inside, then closed shut and locked it down. Kuronue dropped the girl on a bed, and then noticed she was barely breathing. It wasn't really his business but he cleaned up her wounds and wrapped them up in bandages. She was still unconscious, pretty beaten up and fighting for her life, still, she wouldn't let go of the pendant when he tried again to take it back.

~_Half dead and still holds onto it as if it was her own life. _Kuronue thought and a slight smirk graced his face.

The demon soon took his vest and hat off, and then walking towards the bathing room, looked back. The human girl wouldn't wake up being so beaten, but she could die due to her condition. Or maybe she wouldn't. He turned again and went off to take a bath, still curious about this stubborn human.

//*

Maya-chan: Oi! That took a while, sumimasen, minna!

Fans: When are you giving us more Kuro-kun?!

Maya-chan: Don't worry, next chapter is cooking up… (smirks)


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter's intro: The demon thief, Kuronue, was off to take a bath after cleaning Chiaki's wounds. Will she make it? What lies ahead for her?

/*

After a long, warm bath, the bat demon was feeling refreshed, so he wrapped himself in some towels and entered again his room. He sat on the bed and looked down at Chiaki, her faint breathing was somewhat disturbing to him. Again, he reached for the pendant, but it seemed even unconscious she'd never let go. He sighed, then walked away and changed into fresh clothes.

_~When will she let go of my pendant?_ He thought to himself as he walked down the hall to get something to eat.

That night, he went out on a mission and by the time he returned 2 days later, many rumors about the human had already spread widely amongst the gang members. He was annoyed to walk in and feel everyone whispering while he walked away. He grabs someone angrily and inquired.

"What the fuck is going on?" he said, glaring at the demon.

"I-it-it's nothing Kuronue-sama, just some rumor…" the demon explained and then his face went pale. Now he had to explain everything and Kuronue didn't seem particularly friendly at the moment.

"Rumor? About?" he was starting to feel angry.

"I heard about it too, so I was waiting for your return" said a voice, coming from behind as a hand patted him.

Kuronue turned to meet his friend, Youko Kurama, and both decided to walk away, headed to Kuronue's room. On the way there, they chatted about the mission and then about the rumor.

"Well, I heard you brought a human woman over, and left her in your room, so I was dying to know what has happened" said Youko smirking "since you hate humans so much…"

Kuronue opened the door to his room and there it was… A human, lying unconscious in his bed, wrapped in bandages. Youko was surprised at this and decided to just bother him a bit, since he thought it might be fun. But soon, he stopped when he noticed the girl was holding Kuronue's most precious pendant.

"Ah, I just remembered there's something I gotta do" said Youko and left quickly, thinking this is better left alone.

_~Tch. That sly fox… Bet he's thinking something weird._ Thought Kuronue, heading straight to check on the girl.

Her breathing was stable, her wounds were better, but when he tried again to take the pendant from her hand, she would tighten the grip. He sighed and went off elsewhere to rest. These past few days Chiaki has been unconscious, her mind would wander through her memories, and she'd had dreams and nightmares.

_FLASHBACK_

"Nee, mama, why is auntie crying?" asked a 4-year-old Chiaki.

"She's very sad, sweetie, your uncle has left for heaven" said her mom also about to cry.

_(another time)_

_~Why? Why did this have to happen? I miss you guys so much_. Thought a crying Chiaki, in her family's funeral.

"Chiaki-chan, you have to be strong for them, and I'll be here for you" said aunt Tsubaki, holding her.

_END OF FLASHBACK_

Kuronue came back to get something and saw tears streaming down Chiaki's face. He felt compelled to reach for her, and wipe the tears. He wondered what was going on. She was dreaming about her beloved ones, they were leaving her, and she was chasing after them, but to no avail. Suddenly, she opened her eyes, still crying, and felt the caress from his hand, wiping the tears. She was surprised, but not as much as him, who bolted out of the room once she moved to look at him.

Chiaki sat down slowly, still in pain from the beating, and looked around. No one there, she was in a bed so soft, with silky sheets, and there was a big window. She didn't know where she was, nor did it matter. Right now, she was glad to be alive and well, and suddenly she gasped.

_~Hmm… Ah, I still have the pendant… _she thought, looking down at her clenched fist. _I'm alive thanks to you_.

Kuronue was standing outside his room, shocked, realizing what he has just done. Then he heard a loud thud, and rushed inside to see Chiaki lying on the floor. She had tried to get up, but had no energy at all, so she fell immediately. He walked to her and helped her stand, then pushed her back to bed.

"Give it back" he said looking away. She gave him a quizzical look, not knowing what he referred to. "The pendant, give it back" he repeated.

"No way, this is mine" she said. He was getting impatient. He walked over to her, anger surging.

"It's not yours, you just happened to find it. Give it back, I'm its owner" he said on a dark tone, while glaring at her.

She still refused to give it back, so he left infuriated, confused and a little bit happy. It was the first time someone held his treasure so dearly.

/*

Maya-chan: I'm soooooooooooo sorry it took forever to get back to this.

Fan-girls *throws shurikens at Maya*: you bet it did… and you better start giving us more Kuronue-sama or you'll pay _

Maya-chan *taking cover behind her desk*: hai, hai, but if you kill me, I won't be able to write anymore ToT

Fan-girls *stopped*: right… *walked away*

Kuronue: hey, what's this all about? *reading second chapter*

Maya-chan: omg, omg, that's nothing *takes away laptop from him*

Kuronue: hmm… wanna read it _

Maya-chan: go away _ *kicks him out of the room, and gets back to writing* gotta do this or I'll get killed ToT


End file.
